Rabindranath Biswas
Kamorta ,Sept. 27: Vehicle ferry service in Kamorta, Champin, Hitui and Munak Islands was severely disrupted owing to malfunctioning of two vehicle ferry boats ferrying in the island.
According to information, the situation is extremely grim in Kamorta, Champin, Hitui and Munak as the motor vessel the is the sole commuting means in these islands and the service provided by it was disrupted owing to malfunctioning of vehicle ferry boats MV Galathia as well as MV Barren.
According to sources, the residents of these islands demanded that these ferry boats should be decommissioned as they have reached decrepit condition while the MV Galathia developed holes beneath, they claimed. And the administration stopped the service of MV Galathia and placed only MV Barren in service. And now since the Barren has also developed a major snag, the residents especially school going children of the islands such as Champin, Hitui and Munak are suffering a lot, they rued.
The situation is unspeakable as the exams in schools are going on while the students couldn’t reportedly attend schools and write the exams yesterday, they further alleged. Though the ferry boat MV Barren was repaired and placed in service, the residents of these islands reportedly can’t rely on the boat and its service as it may breakdown at any moment, they said. In absence of the boat service, residents of these islands reportedly used small dinghies, however, it was highly risky and perilous in the inclement weather and/or rough sea conditions to sail in the tiny dinghies, they said.
They reportedly transmitted a message/signal to the Chief Secretary, Director of Shipping Services and the Member of Parliament as well and apprised them of all the grievous situation they were confronting. However, the higher authorities assured that they would take up the matter on priority. The residents of Kamorta and other islands were reportedly waiting for the redressal; and they said that new boat should have been placed in service but the defunct MV Barren hasn’t been replaced by a new one yet, they lamented.
And the residents now don’t know the reason why the matter is not taken seriously while it is much concerning, the decried. It is a serious issue and the administration should immediately resolve it as ferry boat service is life-line in this group of islands, and without it patients and students are put in grievous situation, they rued.
The denizens of these islands further said that the DSS carried out a mending on the MV Barren but it doesn’t guarantee how many days it will sail and then they will have to face the wrath of the situation again in the event of it going kaput, they warned. They would further talk to the administration so as to resume the service with a new boat so that they face no such difficulties in future. However, if their demand isn’t met, the Tribal Council along with students and the general public would mount a peaceful agitation in front of the Office of the Assistant Commissioner, they further warned.